Cople is a small village with a parish population of 736 (as given in the 2001 Census) lying just under two kilometres to the east of Cardington. The derivation of the name is uncertain but it could come from an Old English personal name or the word cocc and pol giving 'Cocca's/Cog(g)a's pool' or 'cock pool '. In the Domesday Book of 1086 the name appears as Cochepol.

The parish church, dedicated to All Saints, is famous for its collection of monumental brasses which are the best in the county. To the northwest of the church stands the picturesque former nineteenth century Parish Bier House, now in the grounds of a private residence.

Cople

The Five Bells

In the corner by the fire place in the Five Bells sits the ghost of a sailor. He has been described as having the appearance of a matelot though the connection with the sea may be due to the fact that the oak beams in the building were thought to have originally come from Elizabethan ships but this is not the case. Descriptions of the figure always agree that he is old but of indeterminate age, that he has a pigtail, he wears a hooped shirt, has puttees around his feet and smokes a clay pipe. He sits in a pew which is a common feature in the public house.

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Cople, The Five Bells